Who's who in The OC

12:01AM GMT 29 Jan 2005

A potted guide to the cast of California's hottest soap

Ryan Atwood

The bright kid from the wrong side of the tracks was taken in by the family of his lawyer, Sandy Cohen, after he crashed a car and his alcoholic mother threw him out. Spent much of series one doing a Russell Crowe impression; he brooded, punched people and had a tortured on-off relationship with Marissa, the beautiful girl next door. Rewarded the Cohens for their generosity by burning down their new house. At the end of the series he skipped back to his home town of Chino after his ex-girlfriend Theresa fell pregnant with a child that may or may not be his. Will he return to Newport to tap the Cohens for yet more hospitality? Of course. But he's rumoured to be a little cheerier in season two.

Ryan on Newport: "You know what I like about rich kids?" (Punches Marissa's ex-boyfriend Luke.) "Nothing!"

Marissa Cooper

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Marissa is the prettiest girl in Newport, with no shortage of male admirers or designer clothes. This hasn't stopped her trying to commit suicide, or developing a tendency to pop painkillers with vodka. But who can blame her? Her father, a financial advisor called Jimmy, narrowly escaped jail for stealing money from his wealthy clients.

Her gold-digging mother Julie then divorced him and had an affair with her daughter's ex-boyfriend, Luke. Then Ryan, her love interest, went off with his ex. No wonder the poor girl is confused. Dubbed "Marissa the Moron" by one fan website; expect more tortured navel-gazing in season two, when she starts a lesbian affair with a new character.

Marissa on herself: "I'm still the girl who tried to kill herself in Mexico."

Seth Cohen

Comic book, indie music and skateboarding obsessive Seth would be considered cool in most parts of the Western world. In the glamorous yet shallow environs of Newport Beach, he's thought of as a geek. Until, that is, moody Ryan moves in, becomes his best friend, and gives him a bit of cred. And before Seth knows it, Summer – the girl of his dreams who had always refused to acknowledge his existence – is giving up her virginity to him.

Unashamedly sarcastic, Seth has single-handedly revived the fortunes of the Penguin polo shirt, which he wears in almost every episode, and has changed teen vocab forever with his use of words such as "minty" (meaning uncool) and "ridonkulous" (deserving of ridicule). Last seen sailing off into the Pacific, crestfallen that Ryan had left, leaving poor Summer heartbroken.

Seth on Ryan: "He enjoys sunset walks, punching people and not smiling."

Summer Roberts

As self-absorbed as her best friend Marissa, but has the self-awareness to realise it. When asked what her and her plastic surgeon father talk about, she quips: "Mostly we talk about me.

It's, like, our common interest." When we first meet Summer she is vapidly trawling Newport's most glamorous parties for wealthy bankers, before finding, to her initial horror, that she is falling for Seth (or "Cohen" as she likes to call him.) Aside from herself, Summer's interests include partying and the fictional teen soap The Valley.

Summer: "My dad says chins are the new noses."

Schoolfriend: "Picasso thought so, too."

Summer: "Really? What hospital does he work at? Kidding! I'm not that dumb – just shallow."

Sandy Cohen

Seth Cohen's lawyer father has a heart as big as his eyebrows. Not only did he invite wayward Ryan to live in his family's pool house, but his legal advice saved Marissa's dad, Jimmy Cooper, from doing time.

A native of the Bronx, Sandy and his wealthy wife Kirsten used to be hippies who travelled the country in a mail truck, until she was called back to her Newport family to attend to business. Yet Sandy still clings to his boho roots in the hope of staving off the shallowness of Newport, hence his tendency to pepper chats with words of wisdom (to Ryan: "The next time you think about raising your fists, you better open your mouth and talk"). Gets away with being an irritating martyr thanks to his sarcastic wise-cracking.

Sandy on Newport: "Well, I should be off. Gotta find another kid to jeopardise the community. Maybe a black kid. Or an Asian kid."

Kirsten Cohen

A businesswoman who is smart, successful and every bit as sexy as the teenage girls her son Seth hangs out with, Kirsten was initially reluctant to take in Ryan Atwood. But she warmed to him, and began to realise how her work had created a distance between herself and her husband and son.

Now spends much of her time fretting over Caleb, her unscrupulous property developer father who has a penchant for women young enough to be his daughter. Kirsten's arch enemy is Julie Cooper, the gold-digging mother of Marissa; she is mortified when Julie and Caleb tie the knot.

Kirsten on Caleb: "My dad is marrying Julie Cooper. Julie Cooper is my step-mom… This is an unholy alliance. This is two storm fronts colliding. This is the apocalypse for us all."